Costumes
New series, new look, and Howard Burden is not a man to rest on his laurels. With the revamp of the look of the show it would have been churlish to leave the outfits as they were, and so the main characters got a brand new look they only had to wait 200 years for.
Dave Lister had been seen, during Back to Reality's hallucination sequences, in AR overalls. For the new series, Lister's leathers were blended with the overalls to create a new look.
Rimmer's red colouring was retained at first, although his actual tunic and trousers were altered to a padded jacket and darker, velvet-esque trousers. However, when the change to hardlight came, the hologram was given a blue version of the uniform - again a colour that wouldn't clash with existing sets (Blue Midget not having be seen since series III).
Rimmer also got to transform into Ace, but it was decided that a change of costume was inappropriate and the character remained in the blue padded jacket throughout, Moreover, the wig Chris Barrie wore was a disappointing cousin of the original, making Chris feel less 'Ace' than he had done previosuly.
Kryten actor Robert Llewellyn found himself in the fortunate - and unusual - position of having a more comfortable outfit this season. Kryten's new, flexible coverings allowed the performer more movement than before (hell, he could even sit down!). The three LED lights on each shoulder were, unfortunately, unable to be lit... maybe somebody remembered the cigarette lighter problem from Red Dwarf III!
Following the themes of the series, Howard created a kind of 'recyclable' outfit for the Cat based on one main piece over which new jackets would be worn. The theory behind this was that, with supplies low, even the Cat would be forced to go without his usual 20 changes of outfit each day. (Although there was, apparently, room for an anorak when he changed into Duane Dibbley!)
Dressing the cast up for Gunmen was a difficult task, and one that required the mass-hire of cowboy outfits to save money. Danny's Three Amigos look proved hugely effective for The Riviera Kid, while for Craig there was yet more leather. Long coats worked for the other two - and granted Robert another relief from the main Kryten costume.
In fact, Robert also got out of the robot suit for Out of Time as his future counterpart developed a liking for pastels and roll-necks (as well as eyebrows and wigs). Rimmer, meanwhile, was padded up and given a yellow edition of his familiar jacket. Weirdest of all was Lister, whose brain-in-a-jar look was actually created by the costume department. (Although they had some trouble keeping the brain from floating to the surface!)
Elsewhere, more group-outfitting was required. GELF tribes were swiftly moulded and made (and cannibalised from existing costumes) with a great deal of additional hair, and Roman-style guards outfits became the thing on Rimmerworld.
Still, spare a thought for Nigel Williams who turned up on location for the pre-record as Legion and found he had to squeeze into an outfit that was far too tight. In the end he was sewn in - and therefore had to stay wrapped up for the duration of the shoot. Less unlucky were the simulants, whose leather gear may have looked hot under the studio lights - but they were actually surprisingly comfortable.
